Hey all,
Figured I’d start a build thread to document the “mild” modifications to my 4runner. I bought a 1996 4runner SR5 from the original owner in Charlotte, NC. My main criteria for this vehicle were 4wd and 5spd. Unfortunately, the horizontal surfaces of the car suffer from peeling clearcoat, but otherwise, the undercarriage and body are straight and 100% rust free. The 4runner had 170k miles on it when I bought it.
I will be moving back to where I grew up in New England next year, and wanted to keep my BMW ZHP as my summer car (obviously). I bought the 4Runner down where I am now for the obvious lack of rust.
When I first bought it:
The PO informed me that the timing belt was change ~100k miles ago, so that was first of the list. I am a maintenance freak coming from my 8 previous cars being BMW’s.
While doing the timing belt, I replaced all accessory belts and pulleys (including the fan mount) along with plugs, air filter, oil, etc.
Next was suspension. I replaced the upper and lower ball joints, sway bar endlinks, tie rods, shocks, and springs. I’ve also owned a few Jeeps so a lift was necessary. The shocks are Billy 5100’s, Toytec/Eibach front springs, OME 891 rear springs, and a Sonaron adjustable panhard (very glad I did this). Obviously the running boards were removed as well.
For wheels and tires, I went with a 4th gen 4runner set of 16’s with Treadwright Guard Dogs in 265/75 R16.
Before suspension with running boards removed:
During install:
As for the interior, the bottoms of the leather seats were trashed so I purchased a set of panels done by “upholsteryguys” on ebay. Kind of a steep price, but 100% worth it. The color was a close match (as close as you can get with a ~17 yr old car. That coupled with the removal of the wood grain trim, OEM floormats, and an OEM stereo with a USA Spec iPod adapter, the interior returned to a close to OEM condition.
After:
Picture of my current BMW for good measure:
The most recent BMW before the ZHP
Plans for the future include any general maintenance and maybe bumpers. Otherwise, this should prove to be a reliable rig for both daily driving and fun. Only time will tell
Max
Figured I’d start a build thread to document the “mild” modifications to my 4runner. I bought a 1996 4runner SR5 from the original owner in Charlotte, NC. My main criteria for this vehicle were 4wd and 5spd. Unfortunately, the horizontal surfaces of the car suffer from peeling clearcoat, but otherwise, the undercarriage and body are straight and 100% rust free. The 4runner had 170k miles on it when I bought it.
I will be moving back to where I grew up in New England next year, and wanted to keep my BMW ZHP as my summer car (obviously). I bought the 4Runner down where I am now for the obvious lack of rust.
When I first bought it:
The PO informed me that the timing belt was change ~100k miles ago, so that was first of the list. I am a maintenance freak coming from my 8 previous cars being BMW’s.
While doing the timing belt, I replaced all accessory belts and pulleys (including the fan mount) along with plugs, air filter, oil, etc.
Next was suspension. I replaced the upper and lower ball joints, sway bar endlinks, tie rods, shocks, and springs. I’ve also owned a few Jeeps so a lift was necessary. The shocks are Billy 5100’s, Toytec/Eibach front springs, OME 891 rear springs, and a Sonaron adjustable panhard (very glad I did this). Obviously the running boards were removed as well.
For wheels and tires, I went with a 4th gen 4runner set of 16’s with Treadwright Guard Dogs in 265/75 R16.
Before suspension with running boards removed:
During install:
As for the interior, the bottoms of the leather seats were trashed so I purchased a set of panels done by “upholsteryguys” on ebay. Kind of a steep price, but 100% worth it. The color was a close match (as close as you can get with a ~17 yr old car. That coupled with the removal of the wood grain trim, OEM floormats, and an OEM stereo with a USA Spec iPod adapter, the interior returned to a close to OEM condition.
After:
Picture of my current BMW for good measure:
The most recent BMW before the ZHP
Plans for the future include any general maintenance and maybe bumpers. Otherwise, this should prove to be a reliable rig for both daily driving and fun. Only time will tell
Max
